But like many local business owners and residents, he was excited about the 2009 Butterfly Criterium, despite the city”s main thoroughfares closing to cars for 12 hours.

“Our little town could use more events like this,” said Smith, who owns an architecture firm in the city. “Look how many people are out here today. It”s cool. It”s kind of fun because there are a lot more people out. As opposed to it being dead, which it usually is.”

The Butterfly Criterium returned to Pacific Grove after a 30-year absence. It featured 11 separate races of about 45 minutes.

Hundreds of spectators turned out to watch 250 cyclists compete for a purse of $4,000 cash and a $6,000 worth of prizes.

Proceeds greater than the event”s operating costs will benefit next year”s purse, said race director Bruce Skidmore, who rides with the Ghost Tree Riders cycling club, which sponsored the race.

As part of their membership obligations to USA Cycling, local clubs like Ghost Tree Riders must help stage one cycling race a year. When Skidmore”s group heard about the Butterfly Criterium races of the 1970s, members contacted the Pacific Grove Chamber of Commerce about reviving the race.

“Part of their business plan was to bring the bike race back,” Skidmore said. “So it was the perfect meld. They said, ”You run it, we”ll support it.””

Mixed reviews

About 20 local businesses operated tents along the race course Sunday.

Jose Barajas, owner of Michael”s Grill & Taqueria, paid race organizers $250 to set up a stand selling burritos to hungry spectators on Lighthouse Avenue. He found out about the race because one of the organizers is a regular at his restaurant in Pacific Grove.

“We went through a lot of wraps,” Barajas said. “It”s been busy, a good crowd. We”re having a good time.”

Domenic Aliotti, who co-owns the bustling Victorian Corner Restaurant on Lighthouse Avenue, was not having such a good Sunday. He said he did not think the race would have a positive economic impact on his business.

Although all the tables were full at noon, he said fewer customers than usual had come through. The restaurant usually maintains a waiting list during its Sunday hours, but did not have one Sunday morning.

“The race probably scared off some of our local people who come in after church,” he said. “We had a couple people who called this morning, and they decided not to come when I told them the roads were closed.

“So maybe some other restaurants further from downtown got the business.”

A few doors down, Kim Chiewpanich was working on commission at Marita”s Boutique, a woman”s clothing shop.

Chiewpanich lives in Marina and only works in Pacific Grove on Sundays. She didn”t know about the race until she arrived for work. The “20 percent off” sign she hung in the window wasn”t bolstering traffic, she said.

“I”ve had a few people from the race, but they”re just coming in to get warm,” she said, laughing. “My normal customers that come on Sunday can”t park. And a lot of them are older. They don”t want to look for parking and walk down here. They want to park out front of the store.”

”A good energy”

Pacific Grove Mayor Dan Cort said he understands that shutting down main streets to automobile traffic makes some business owners uncomfortable. But he said he doesn”t think catering only to car-reliant shoppers will contribute to the future vibrancy of the city.

That”s why he said he”ll wait to evaluate the economic impact of Sunday”s race.

“I don”t know that people can evaluate an event like this the first time, until later,” he said. “Every place I”ve lived, activities like this bring out folks. Good businesses, businesses that will survive this recession, will need that walk-in traffic. Old-fashioned businesses are the ones that want people to pull in and pull out to parking lots. That”s an old-fashioned methodology.

“If we”re going to make it in this new millennium, we have to think out of the box.”

Mona Kelly, a sales associate at BiBa, a women”s clothing boutique on Forest Avenue, lives and works in the city center. She said BiBa, about a block from the race course, experienced no difference in customer traffic. But she was optimistic about the race nonetheless.

Kelly said the city is often a “ghost town.”

“It”s nice to see some life here today,” she said. “I don”t mind events like this. Otherwise, it”s such a quiet place.”

Linda Grace of Monterey said the race did not impact her worship at Pacific Coast Church, about a half-block from the route.

“Walking in, I passed some cyclists and I wished them well,” she said. “I felt a good energy from them.”

Grace said parishioners could not hear the race emcee, his Kentucky Derby-style announcements audible just outside the church doors, during services.

Around the corner on Fountain Avenue, longtime resident Michelle McNeill sat cozily in her window seat, alongside her 16-year-old Chihuahua, having brunch while looking over the race boundaries at the intersection of Fountain Avenue and Park Place.

She said traffic patterns in the area were typical for a Sunday. The race did not seem to have a substantial impact.